1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a processing apparatus for executing a prescribed process to an object target and particularly to a processing apparatus including two kinds of control units and information storage apparatus and method used thereof.
2. Description of the Related Art
For manufacturing a semiconductor device, various processes are executed such as a deposition process for depositing a prescribed film on an object target such as a semiconductor wafer, a photolithography process for patterning the prescribed film, an etching process for etching the prescribed film in accordance with the pattern. Accordingly, a deposition apparatus, a photoresist coating and development apparatus, an etching apparatus and other apparatuses are employed for executing the above-mentioned processes.
Here, the photoresist coating and development apparatus for the photolithography process is explained as an example. First, the semiconductor wafer is cleaned, applied to a hydrophobic process in an adhesion unit, cooled in a cooling unit, and coated by a photoresist film thereon in a photoresist coating unit. Then, the semiconductor wafer is pre-baked in a hot plate unit, cooled in the cooling unit, and light-exposed by a prescribed pattern thereon in a light-exposure unit. Further, the semiconductor wafer is applied to a post exposure baking process in the hot plate unit, cooled in the cooling unit, coated by a developing solution for developing the light-exposed pattern. Finally, the semiconductor wafer is post-baked in the hot plate unit in order to thermally transform and polymerize the film and improve an adhesion of the pattern to the semiconductor wafer. Thus, the photoresist coating and development apparatus is an integrated combination of a plurality of process units directed to a series of processes except the light exposure. Further, the photoresist coating and development apparatus includes a transfer apparatus for transferring in and from every process unit.
The above-explained photoresist coating and development apparatus is controlled by a first control unit for controlling recipes for the processes and the transfer apparatus and for communicate with a host computer and by a second control unit for controlling each process in each process unit, on the basis of the first control unit.
The above-mentioned first control unit outputs, toward the second control unit, data necessary for each process unit, while the second control unit controls each process unit, on the basis of the data from the first control unit and information from several sensors. Further, the control data is transmitted from the first control unit to the host computer.
Although complete control information is managed during and after executing the controls of each process unit, it is desired further that a more precise process control is required, that malfunctions and troubles in the apparatus are met quickly, and that a process history is captured in detail. Therefore, it is necessary to obtain not only the control data after completing the process unit control, but only measurement data such as temperature during actual processing, alarm data, or data of driving units.
However, it is intricate and impracticable to capture the process history by using conventional processing apparatuses, because the process elements and hardwares for the process elements are vast.
On the other hand, in the photoresist coating and development apparatus, the cylinder mechanisms are often used for, for example, vertical driving mechanisms of the pins for transferring of the semiconductor wafers in the hot plate unit and elevation mechanisms of the nozzles in the photoresist coating unit.
However, in the control described above, the operation actually performed by the cylinder mechanism is not grasped, though the information required for controlling the cylinder mechanism is prepared, and the information after the control is supervised. Therefore, even if the same control is performed by using a large number of modules using cylinder mechanism in the same processing in, for example, a multi-module system, the processing is rendered nonuniform where there is a variation in operations among the cylinder mechanisms. The prior art is incapable of coping with the particular case.